Qatar Chess Association ready to host Qatar Masters

The Qatar Chess Association (QCA) on Wednesday revealed the final preparations for the start of the fourth edition of the hugely popular Qatar Masters.
The tournament, set to include a group of world champions, will be held from December 2 to 12 at the Aspire Zone.
This was announced at a press conference held by the tournament’s organising committee at the Torch Hotel, the official headquarters of the participating delegations.
Mohammed al-Mudahka, President of QCA, said 300 male and female players representing 25 countries will be seen in action during the course of the tournament. India are participating with the largest number of players – 110, the QCA chief confirmed on Wednesday.
“The registration process has closed. We can announce that Nodirbek Abdusattorov, ranked sixth in the world and runner-up in the last tournament, will be the top player at this year’s event,” al-Mudahka said.
“Nodirbek Yakubboev, the defending champion along with India’s Arjun Erigaisi and Gukesh Dommaraju and Iran’s Parham Maghsoodloo are also confirmed entries,” he said.
Al-Mudahka said international grandmaster Hussein Aziz, who will represent Qatar, and UAE’s Salem Abdulrahman Mohamed Saleh will also be present in the tournament, as well as Adham Fawzy from Egypt.
Al-Mudahka said the absence of Norwegian chess star Magnus Carlsen, the world champion, would be felt by fans in Doha. “The player’s commitments to several other international events and the crowded international agenda prevented him from playing in Doha this year,” al-Mudahka said.
Also absent will be American Hikaru Nakamura, one of the top ranked players, and Dutchman Anish Giri. The winner in Doha will bag $25,000. Al-Mudahka, who holds the position of Director of International Relations at FIDE, said his federation and the game’s ruling body enjoy a great working relationship. Al-Mudahka said the International B Championship will witness participation of 20 Qatari players. “Top international events in Qatar provide a great opportunity for many of our players to raise their level of classification. Qatar players also get the chance to interact with different schools of thought in chess,” he said.
Regarding the extent of the benefit of organising this tournament for players ranked under 2500 points, al-Mudahka said: “In recent years, we have been keen to promote chess in schools which is a very important project that includes 12 government schools. Also there is co-operation with the Qatar Foundation in this framework.
“We thank the Ministry of Sports and Youth for their great support for this tournament, which will help develop the game of chess and expand it across Qatar. We will continue our efforts to bring Qatari chess to the position we aspire to,” he added.
Hamad al-Tamimi, Executive Director of QCA and Tournament Director, stated that hosting the tournament at Aspire Zone is a significant development. He emphasised the venue’s strategic location within the integrated sports city and its suitability for a successful tournament. Al-Tamimi also indicated that the organising committee will host accompanying events and activities related to chess for the public’s interest.
The tournament is scheduled to commence on December 2nd, with participants arriving in Doha on December 1.
A technical meeting will be held at the Torch Hotel on the morning of December 2, followed by the competition at Aspire Zone Hall.